commotion vs upheaval

commotion and upheaval both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
commotion	Yes	No	No	No
upheaval	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, upheaval is a hyponym of commotion; that is, upheaval is a word with a more specific, narrower meaning than commotion:

commotion (noun)	upheaval (noun)
the act of making a noisy disturbance	disturbance usually in protest
confused movement	(geology) a rise of land to a higher elevation (as in the process of mountain building)
a disorderly outburst or tumult	a state of violent disturbance and disorder (as in politics or social conditions generally)
	a violent disturbance